Vaughan Gething: Difference between revisions
ditto, multiple reliable sources reported his 50th birthday Tag: Reverted |
sources saying he "celebrated his 50th birthday" do not necessarily refer to any actual celebration, but are a figure of speech equivalent to saying "he turned 50" - and that is likely based on the date taken from Wikipedia |
||
Line 50: | Line 50: | ||
| predecessor6 = [[Lorraine Barrett]] |
| predecessor6 = [[Lorraine Barrett]] |
||
| successor6 = |
| successor6 = |
||
| birth_date = |
| birth_date = 1974 |
||
| birth_place = [[Lusaka]], Zambia<ref>{{cite news |last1=Davies |first1=Daniel |title=Welsh Labour's mystery runners? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-46138224 |access-date=17 August 2019 |work=BBC News |date=9 November 2018 |archive-date=27 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190527205957/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-46138224 |url-status=live }}</ref> |
| birth_place = [[Lusaka]], Zambia<ref>{{cite news |last1=Davies |first1=Daniel |title=Welsh Labour's mystery runners? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-46138224 |access-date=17 August 2019 |work=BBC News |date=9 November 2018 |archive-date=27 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190527205957/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-46138224 |url-status=live }}</ref> |
||
| death_date = |
| death_date = |
||
Line 76: | Line 76: | ||
| successor = [[Next Welsh Labour leadership election|TBC]] |
| successor = [[Next Welsh Labour leadership election|TBC]] |
||
}} |
}} |
||
'''Humphrey Vaughan ap David Gething''' (born |
'''Humphrey Vaughan ap David Gething''' (born 1974) is a Welsh [[Welsh Labour|Labour]] and [[Labour and Co-operative Party|Co-operative Party]] politician who is currently serving as [[First Minister of Wales]] and [[Welsh Labour#Elected leaders|leader of Welsh Labour]] since 2024, making him the first black<!--Don't change to "mixed-race" undiscussed.--><ref>Gething is referred to as "black" in multiple sources. {{Unbulleted list citebundle|{{Cite web |date=2024-03-20 |title=UK has its first Black government leader as Vaughan Gething is elected first minister of Wales |url=https://apnews.com/article/vaughan-gething-wales-first-minister-black-uk-ca5ae06d6215b10a693fb8063a49397d |access-date=2024-04-07 |website=AP News |language=en}}|{{Cite news |last=Deb |first=Sopan |date=21 March 2024 |title=Vaughan Gething of Wales Is Europe’s First Black Head of Government |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/21/world/europe/vaughan-gething-wales-parliament.html |work=[[The New York Times]]}}|{{Cite web |date=2024-03-20 |title=Wales' election of its first Black leader means no White man runs a U.K. government for the first time ever - CBS News |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/wales-vaughan-gething-election-black-leader-uk/ |access-date=2024-04-07 |website=www.cbsnews.com |language=en-US}}|{{Cite news |last=Morris |first=Steven |date=2024-03-16 |title=Who is Vaughan Gething, the new Welsh Labour leader? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/mar/16/vaughan-gething-welsh-labours-first-black-leader-of-a-european-nation |access-date=2024-04-07 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}|{{Cite news |date=2024-03-15 |title=Vaughan Gething to become Wales' first black leader |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-politics-68500807 |access-date=2024-04-07 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}}}</ref> leader of any European country.<!--Do not change, please discuss whether other wording should be used.--><ref name="BBC who is22">{{Cite news |date=16 March 2024 |title=Who is Vaughan Gething, Wales' next first minister? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-68336716 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240319164300/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-68336716 |archive-date=19 March 2024 |access-date=20 March 2024 |work=BBC News}}</ref><ref>The following sources describes Gething to lead a "country". {{unbulleted list citebundle||{{Cite news |last=Morris |first=Steven |date=2024-03-16 |title=Vaughan Gething to become Welsh first minister after Labour leadership win |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/mar/16/vaughan-gething-to-become-welsh-first-minister-after-labour-leadership-win |access-date=2024-04-07 |work=The Observer |language=en-GB |issn=0029-7712}}|{{Cite news |date=2024-03-20 |title=Vaughan Gething to Become First Black Leader of European Country |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-03-20/vaughan-gething-to-become-first-black-leader-of-european-country |access-date=2024-04-07 |work=Bloomberg.com |language=en}}|{{Cite web |last=Farrell |first=James |title=Who Is Vaughan Gething? What To Know About Europe’s First Black Government Leader. |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesfarrell/2024/03/16/who-is-vaughan-gething-what-to-know-about-europes-first-black-government-leader/ |access-date=2024-04-07 |website=Forbes |language=en}}|{{Cite web |title=Vaughan Gething to become next first minister of Wales after winning Welsh Labour leadership race |url=https://news.sky.com/story/vaughan-gething-set-to-become-next-first-minister-of-wales-after-winning-welsh-labour-leadership-race-13088431 |access-date=2024-04-07 |website=Sky News |language=en}}|{{Cite news |last=Hazell |first=Will |date=2024-03-16 |title=Vaughan Gething to become Welsh First Minister and Europe’s first black leader |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2024/03/16/vaughan-gething-labour-wales-first-black-first-minister/ |access-date=2024-04-07 |work=The Telegraph |language=en-GB |issn=0307-1235}}|{{Cite news |date=2024-03-18 |title=Vaughan Gething: What does his win mean for representation? |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-68600714 |access-date=2024-04-07 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}|{{Cite web |title=Vaughan Gething wins Welsh Labour leadership contest |url=https://www.ft.com/content/7ab2205a-b389-485d-8437-b322684fb910 |access-date=2024-04-07 |website=www.ft.com}}}}</ref> Gething previously served as the [[Minister for Health and Social Services]] from [[2016 National Assembly for Wales election|2016]] to 2021 and [[Minister for the Economy (Wales)|Minister for the Economy]] from 2021 to 2024. He has been the [[Member of the Senedd]] (MS) for [[Cardiff South and Penarth (Senedd constituency)|Cardiff South and Penarth]] since [[2011 National Assembly for Wales election|2011]]. |
||
Born in [[Zambia]], Gething studied at [[Beaminster School|Beaminster Comprehensive and Sixth Form]] in Dorset, followed by [[Aberystwyth University]], where he graduated with a [[Academic degree|degree]] in Law in 1999; he then attended the [[Cardiff Law School]], at the [[University of Cardiff]]. Having completed his training as a [[solicitor]] with the [[trade union]] firm [[Thompsons Solicitors|Thompsons]] in [[Cardiff]] in 2001, Gething chose to specialise in [[employment law]]. Gething joined the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] when he was 17. He contested [[Mid and West Wales (National Assembly for Wales electoral region)|Mid and West Wales]] for Labour in the [[1999 National Assembly for Wales election|inaugural elections]] to the [[National Assembly for Wales]] in 1999, but was not elected. He served as a [[councillor]] from 2004 to 2008, representing [[Butetown (electoral ward)|Butetown electoral ward]] on [[Cardiff Council]]. In the [[2011 National Assembly for Wales election]], Gething was selected as the Welsh Labour candidate for the Cardiff South and Penarth constituency in the [[Senedd]]. He increased the Labour vote with a swing of 12.5%. At the following [[2016 National Assembly for Wales election|2016 election]], Gething was re-elected. |
Born in [[Zambia]], Gething studied at [[Beaminster School|Beaminster Comprehensive and Sixth Form]] in Dorset, followed by [[Aberystwyth University]], where he graduated with a [[Academic degree|degree]] in Law in 1999; he then attended the [[Cardiff Law School]], at the [[University of Cardiff]]. Having completed his training as a [[solicitor]] with the [[trade union]] firm [[Thompsons Solicitors|Thompsons]] in [[Cardiff]] in 2001, Gething chose to specialise in [[employment law]]. Gething joined the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] when he was 17. He contested [[Mid and West Wales (National Assembly for Wales electoral region)|Mid and West Wales]] for Labour in the [[1999 National Assembly for Wales election|inaugural elections]] to the [[National Assembly for Wales]] in 1999, but was not elected. He served as a [[councillor]] from 2004 to 2008, representing [[Butetown (electoral ward)|Butetown electoral ward]] on [[Cardiff Council]]. In the [[2011 National Assembly for Wales election]], Gething was selected as the Welsh Labour candidate for the Cardiff South and Penarth constituency in the [[Senedd]]. He increased the Labour vote with a swing of 12.5%. At the following [[2016 National Assembly for Wales election|2016 election]], Gething was re-elected. |
||
Line 83: | Line 83: | ||
==Early life== |
==Early life== |
||
Humphrey Vaughan ap David Gething<ref name="BBC who is3">{{Cite news |date=16 March 2024 |title=Who is Vaughan Gething, Wales' next first minister? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-68336716 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240319164300/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-68336716 |archive-date=19 March 2024 |access-date=20 March 2024 |work=BBC News}}</ref> was born in [[Lusaka]], [[Zambia]], |
Humphrey Vaughan ap David Gething<ref name="BBC who is3">{{Cite news |date=16 March 2024 |title=Who is Vaughan Gething, Wales' next first minister? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-68336716 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240319164300/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-68336716 |archive-date=19 March 2024 |access-date=20 March 2024 |work=BBC News}}</ref> was born in [[Lusaka]], [[Zambia]],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Mercer |first=Rosie |last2=Deans |first2=David |date=16 July 2024 |title=The Welsh first minister who lasted 118 days |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cw0y7x157nlo |access-date=17 July 2024 |work=BBC News |quote=Mr Gething, whose full name is Humphrey Vaughan ap David Gething, was born in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, in southern Africa in 1974.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Gregory |first=Andy |date=16 March 2024 |title=Vaughan Gething to become Wales’s first minister and country's first Black leader |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/wales-first-minister-vaughan-gething-drakeford-labour-b2513686.html |access-date=17 July 2024 |work=The Independent |quote=Mr Gething was chosen by Welsh Labour members to be their party leader in a result announced in Cardiff on Saturday, the day after his 50th birthday.}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> where his father, a [[White British|white]] [[Welsh people|Welsh]] veterinarian from [[Ogmore-by-Sea]] in [[Glamorgan]], met his mother, who is a black Zambian and was working as a chicken farmer.<ref name="Grauniad 122">{{cite news |last=Owen |first=Paul |date=3 August 2009 |title=Black Welshman aims to take the fight to the BNP |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2009/aug/03/vaughan-gething-labour |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130907030831/http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2009/aug/03/vaughan-gething-labour |archive-date=7 September 2013 |access-date=12 May 2011 |work=The Guardian}}</ref> Gething describes his father as "a white Welsh economic migrant".<ref name="Grauniad 122" /> When he was two years old, he moved to [[Abergavenny]] in [[Monmouthshire (historic)|Monmouthshire, Wales]], with his family, which also included three brothers and a sister.<ref name=":122">{{Cite web |last=Harri |first=Guto |date=31 October 2018 |title=Vaughan Gething wants to be Welsh Labour's Sadiq Khan |url=https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/vaughan-gething-health-minister |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807215310/https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/vaughan-gething-health-minister |archive-date=7 August 2020 |access-date=14 July 2020 |website=British GQ |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref name="Grauniad 122" /> In Monmouthshire, his family experienced [[Racism in the United Kingdom|racism]] when an employer withdrew a job offer to Gething's father upon seeing the rest of his family.<ref name=":122" /><ref name=":022">{{Cite web |last1=Mosalski |first1=Ruth |date=6 Nov 2018 |title=The Vaughan Gething interview: The racism I faced growing up, my family and why I'd be the best First Minister |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/politics/vaughan-gething-interview-racism-faced-15375483 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240317065037/https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/politics/vaughan-gething-interview-racism-faced-15375483 |archive-date=17 March 2024 |access-date=17 March 2024 |website=Wales Online}}</ref> Speaking of the incident, Gething said: "They said, 'Come back with your family and we'll sign everything up', but he walked in with my mother, and a trail of brown boys, and the job offer got withdrawn".<ref name=":022" /> His father eventually found work in [[Dorset|Dorset, England]], where Gething was brought up.<ref name=":122" /> |
||
Gething studied at [[Beaminster School|Beaminster Comprehensive and Sixth Form]] in Dorset, followed by [[Aberystwyth University]], where he graduated with a [[Academic degree|degree]] in Law in 1999;<ref name="Aber22">{{cite web |date=6 June 2011 |title=Alumni at the Senedd |url=https://www.aber.ac.uk/en/news/archive/2011/06/title-99398-en.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926025602/https://www.aber.ac.uk/en/news/archive/2011/06/title-99398-en.html |archive-date=26 September 2020 |access-date=14 May 2020 |publisher=[[Aberystwyth University]]}}</ref> he then attended the [[Cardiff Law School|University of Cardiff Law School]], [[University of Wales]].<ref name="Grauniad 122" /><ref name="Llafur 122">{{cite web |year=2011 |title=Vaughan Gething Assembly selection 2011 |url=http://vaughangething.com/images/VaughanGethingAssemblySelection2011.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110901035710/http://vaughangething.com/images/VaughanGethingAssemblySelection2011.pdf |archive-date=1 September 2011 |access-date=13 May 2011 |publisher=[[Welsh Labour]]}}</ref> During his academic career, Gething became President of [[Aberystwyth University Students' Union|Aberystwyth University Guild of Students]], as well as the first black president of the [[National Union of Students Wales]].<ref name="Grauniad 122" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=About Vaughan |url=https://www.vaughangething.wales/en/about-vaughan/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200920053820/https://www.vaughangething.wales/en/about-vaughan/ |archive-date=20 September 2020 |access-date=10 July 2020 |website=Vaughan Gething MS |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Crecsi |first=Elena |date=15 March 2013 |title=From student unions to the Senedd and Westminster, how do today's youth become tomorrow's AMs and MPs? |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2013/03/15/from-student-unions-to-the-senedd-and-westminster-how-do-today-s-youth-become-tomorrow-s-ams-and-mps-91466-32992122/ |access-date=15 March 2013 |work=Wales Online}}</ref> |
Gething studied at [[Beaminster School|Beaminster Comprehensive and Sixth Form]] in Dorset, followed by [[Aberystwyth University]], where he graduated with a [[Academic degree|degree]] in Law in 1999;<ref name="Aber22">{{cite web |date=6 June 2011 |title=Alumni at the Senedd |url=https://www.aber.ac.uk/en/news/archive/2011/06/title-99398-en.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926025602/https://www.aber.ac.uk/en/news/archive/2011/06/title-99398-en.html |archive-date=26 September 2020 |access-date=14 May 2020 |publisher=[[Aberystwyth University]]}}</ref> he then attended the [[Cardiff Law School|University of Cardiff Law School]], [[University of Wales]].<ref name="Grauniad 122" /><ref name="Llafur 122">{{cite web |year=2011 |title=Vaughan Gething Assembly selection 2011 |url=http://vaughangething.com/images/VaughanGethingAssemblySelection2011.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110901035710/http://vaughangething.com/images/VaughanGethingAssemblySelection2011.pdf |archive-date=1 September 2011 |access-date=13 May 2011 |publisher=[[Welsh Labour]]}}</ref> During his academic career, Gething became President of [[Aberystwyth University Students' Union|Aberystwyth University Guild of Students]], as well as the first black president of the [[National Union of Students Wales]].<ref name="Grauniad 122" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=About Vaughan |url=https://www.vaughangething.wales/en/about-vaughan/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200920053820/https://www.vaughangething.wales/en/about-vaughan/ |archive-date=20 September 2020 |access-date=10 July 2020 |website=Vaughan Gething MS |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Crecsi |first=Elena |date=15 March 2013 |title=From student unions to the Senedd and Westminster, how do today's youth become tomorrow's AMs and MPs? |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2013/03/15/from-student-unions-to-the-senedd-and-westminster-how-do-today-s-youth-become-tomorrow-s-ams-and-mps-91466-32992122/ |access-date=15 March 2013 |work=Wales Online}}</ref> |
Revision as of 09:28, 19 July 2024
This article is about a person involved in a current event. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses, and initial news reports may be unreliable. The last updates to this article may not reflect the most current information. (July 2024) |
Vaughan Gething | |
---|---|
![]() Official portrait, 2024 | |
First Minister of Wales | |
Assumed office 20 March 2024 | |
Monarch | Charles III |
Preceded by | Mark Drakeford |
Succeeded by | TBC |
Leader of Welsh Labour | |
Assumed office 16 March 2024 | |
Deputy | Carolyn Harris |
Preceded by | Mark Drakeford |
Succeeded by | TBC |
Minister for the Economy | |
In office 13 May 2021 – 20 March 2024 | |
First Minister | Mark Drakeford |
Preceded by | Ken Skates |
Succeeded by | Jeremy Miles |
Minister for Health and Social Services | |
In office 19 May 2016 – 13 May 2021 | |
First Minister | Carwyn Jones Mark Drakeford |
Preceded by | Mark Drakeford |
Succeeded by | The Baroness Morgan of Ely |
Deputy Minister for Health | |
In office 11 September 2014 – 19 May 2016[1] | |
First Minister | Carwyn Jones |
Minister | Mark Drakeford |
Preceded by | Office established |
Succeeded by | Rebecca Evans |
Deputy Minister for Tackling Poverty | |
In office 26 June 2013[2] – 11 September 2014 | |
First Minister | Carwyn Jones |
Minister | Jeffrey Cuthbert |
Member of the Senedd for Cardiff South and Penarth | |
Assumed office 6 May 2011 | |
Preceded by | Lorraine Barrett |
Majority | 10,606 (29.2%) |
Personal details | |
Born | 1974 Lusaka, Zambia[3] |
Nationality | Welsh |
Political party | Labour and Co-operative |
Spouse | Michelle Gething |
Alma mater | Aberystwyth University University of Cardiff |
Occupation | Solicitor, trade unionist |
Signature | ![]() |
Humphrey Vaughan ap David Gething (born 1974) is a Welsh Labour and Co-operative Party politician who is currently serving as First Minister of Wales and leader of Welsh Labour since 2024, making him the first black[4] leader of any European country.[5][6] Gething previously served as the Minister for Health and Social Services from 2016 to 2021 and Minister for the Economy from 2021 to 2024. He has been the Member of the Senedd (MS) for Cardiff South and Penarth since 2011.
Born in Zambia, Gething studied at Beaminster Comprehensive and Sixth Form in Dorset, followed by Aberystwyth University, where he graduated with a degree in Law in 1999; he then attended the Cardiff Law School, at the University of Cardiff. Having completed his training as a solicitor with the trade union firm Thompsons in Cardiff in 2001, Gething chose to specialise in employment law. Gething joined the Labour Party when he was 17. He contested Mid and West Wales for Labour in the inaugural elections to the National Assembly for Wales in 1999, but was not elected. He served as a councillor from 2004 to 2008, representing Butetown electoral ward on Cardiff Council. In the 2011 National Assembly for Wales election, Gething was selected as the Welsh Labour candidate for the Cardiff South and Penarth constituency in the Senedd. He increased the Labour vote with a swing of 12.5%. At the following 2016 election, Gething was re-elected.
Gething served in Mark Drakeford's government as Minister for Health; his tenure was dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2024, Gething won the Welsh Labour leadership election to replace Drakeford and become First Minister. Following losing a vote of no confidence motion tabled by the Welsh Conservatives and criticism over a campaign donation of £200,000, and the resignation of four cabinet minsters, in July 2024 Gething announced his pending resignation as First Minister, which will formally take effect when his successor is elected in the next Welsh Labour leadership election.
Early life
Humphrey Vaughan ap David Gething[7] was born in Lusaka, Zambia,[8][9][10] where his father, a white Welsh veterinarian from Ogmore-by-Sea in Glamorgan, met his mother, who is a black Zambian and was working as a chicken farmer.[11] Gething describes his father as "a white Welsh economic migrant".[11] When he was two years old, he moved to Abergavenny in Monmouthshire, Wales, with his family, which also included three brothers and a sister.[12][11] In Monmouthshire, his family experienced racism when an employer withdrew a job offer to Gething's father upon seeing the rest of his family.[12][13] Speaking of the incident, Gething said: "They said, 'Come back with your family and we'll sign everything up', but he walked in with my mother, and a trail of brown boys, and the job offer got withdrawn".[13] His father eventually found work in Dorset, England, where Gething was brought up.[12]
Gething studied at Beaminster Comprehensive and Sixth Form in Dorset, followed by Aberystwyth University, where he graduated with a degree in Law in 1999;[14] he then attended the University of Cardiff Law School, University of Wales.[11][15] During his academic career, Gething became President of Aberystwyth University Guild of Students, as well as the first black president of the National Union of Students Wales.[11][16][17]
Professional career
Having completed his training as a solicitor with the trade union firm Thompsons in Cardiff in 2001, Gething chose to specialise in employment law. He became a partner in Thompsons in 2007.[15]
In 2008, at the age of 34, Gething became the youngest President of Wales TUC, also becoming the first black person to serve in the role.[18][19]
Political career
Gething joined the Labour Party when he was 17, to campaign in the 1992 UK general election.[11] He contested Mid and West Wales for Labour in the inaugural elections to the National Assembly for Wales in 1999, but was not elected.[20]
He served as a councillor from 2004 to 2008, representing Butetown electoral ward on Cardiff Council, having been elected with a majority of two votes over candidate Betty Campbell.[15][21] Following the election, Campbell sent a complaint letter to Cardiff Council alleging that Gething had infringed election rules by handing out leaflets to voters as they entered polling stations and telling them how to vote.[22] Campbell initially intended to have the vote re-examined in the High Court, but abandoned this because of the estimated cost of £12,000.[23]
In the 2011 National Assembly for Wales election, Gething was selected as the Welsh Labour candidate for the Cardiff South and Penarth constituency in the Senedd, after Lorraine Barrett, who had represented Cardiff South and Penarth since the Senedd's creation in 1999, had announced her intention to stand down from her role. On 5 May 2011, Gething increased the Labour vote with a swing of 12.5%. At 13,814, his share of the vote was over 50%, giving him a majority of 6,259 over the Welsh Conservative Party candidate, Ben Gray, placed second.[24][25] At the following 2016 election, Gething was re-elected.[26]
Following the 2016 election, First Minister Carwyn Jones promoted Gething to the Welsh Cabinet, nominating him as Cabinet Secretary for Health, Well-being and Sport.[27]
Gething did not support Jeremy Corbyn in either the 2015 or 2016 Labour Party leadership election against challenger Owen Smith; however, he stated in a 2017 BBC Radio Wales interview that he would still like to see Corbyn as prime minister, saying quote, "I want a Labour prime minister – and that means Jeremy Corbyn being prime minister. [...] I don't think it matters whether I'm a fan or not – it matters whether I think he can do the job in running the country".[28][29]
In August 2017, Gething walked away in the middle of an interview on ITV Wales, when questioned by journalist James Crichton-Smith over his decision not to hold a public inquiry into Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University Health Board, following allegations that an employee had sexually assaulted vulnerable patients.[30]
Gething, alongside Eluned Morgan and Mark Drakeford, was one of the three contenders in the 2018 election for the leadership of Welsh Labour, but was defeated by the latter candidate. Drakeford subsequently re-appointed Gething in the Welsh Cabinet, by nominating him as Health Minister, with the position renamed as Minister for Health and Social Services.[31]
In January 2020, he criticised Corbyn and his failure to tackle antisemitism in the Labour Party.[32] He endorsed Corbyn's successor Keir Starmer.
On 13 May 2021, Gething was appointed as new Minister for the Economy, replacing Ken Skates.[33]
Minister for Health and management of the COVID-19 pandemic
Gething served as the Welsh Minister for Health and Social Services during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
On 12 March 2020, despite a steady surge in the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Wales and other sporting events getting cancelled, Gething resisted calls to postpone a rugby union match between Wales and Scotland at the Principality Stadium, which was due to be sold-out with 74,000 spectators.[34] On the following day, the Welsh Rugby Union announced that the match was officially cancelled.[35] Gething justified his decision in a BBC Radio Wales interview, saying "The medical advice about the risk to people going to the rugby didn't change. What did change was the fact that the rest of sporting world decided that, regardless of that advice, they wanted to put off events".[36]
On 22 April 2020, Gething was caught swearing about fellow Labour MS Jenny Rathbone during a virtual session of the Senedd on Zoom. After Rathbone had asked the Minister a few questions about the Welsh Government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, he failed to mute his microphone as he told an unknown person, "What the fuck is the matter with her?".[37][38] Some undisclosed Labour MSs contacted by BBC Wales said they were also "very angry" over Gething's actions.[37]
In May of the same year, Gething was reportedly photographed by a Sun reporter eating chips with his young son in a local park, prompting criticism by those who suggested he was breaking the COVID-19 restrictions he had imposed himself. Gething denied the accusations, and the Welsh Government stated nothing he had done contravened such regulations.[39]
Gething was questioned at the COVID-19 Inquiry in July 2023, due to his former role as Wales' Minister for Health during the COVID-19 pandemic; in his deposition, he admitted that he had never read a report on Exercise Cygnus, a simulation exercise to estimate the impact of a hypothetical influenza pandemic on the UK population.[40]
2024 Labour leadership election
![](http://178.128.105.246/content-http-upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/77/First_Minister_Vaughan_Gething_and_Mark_Drakeford_MS.jpg/220px-First_Minister_Vaughan_Gething_and_Mark_Drakeford_MS.jpg)
In December 2023, Gething became one of two candidates in the Welsh Labour leadership election to replace Drakeford as party leader and Wales' First Minister.[41]
On 16 January, Gething and the other candidate, Jeremy Miles, took part in a hustings event to get the nomination from the trade union Unite. Miles' team were then informed of a rule requiring that only people who had been "lay officials" could be nominated. Gething therefore received the nomination.[42] Miles claimed he was unfairly blocked from the union nomination.[43] An unnamed Unite official was quoted by BBC News as saying that the nomination of Gething was a "shocking mess".[44] Journalist Martin Shipton later uncovered that Gething had only joined Unite a few months beforehand.[45]
On 16 March, it was announced that Gething had won the election with 51.7% of the vote, thus becoming the leader of Welsh Labour, and would be the new First Minister of Wales.[46][47]
First minister (2024)
![](http://178.128.105.246/content-http-upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/Vaughan_Gething_swearing_in_as_First_Minister_of_Wales.jpg/220px-Vaughan_Gething_swearing_in_as_First_Minister_of_Wales.jpg)
Gething was officially nominated as First Minister by the Senedd on 20 March 2024,[48][49] and announced his cabinet the following day.[50][51] In the process, he became the first black First Minister of Wales,[46] as well as the first black leader of any European country.[47][49] His appointment to His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council was announced on 28 March 2024 as part of the 2024 Special Honours.[52] He was sworn in as a member of the of the privy council on 10 April 2024 at Buckingham Palace.[53] entitling him to the honorific prefix "The Right Honourable" for life.
During the inquiry into the COVID-19 pandemic response, Gething stated that he had not deliberately deleted any messages from his phone.[54] On 7 May, Nation.Cymru obtained text messages from Gething in a Welsh Government group chat, in which he said "I'm deleting the messages in this group. They can be captured in an FOI [Freedom of Information request] and I think we are all in the right place on the choice being made."[54] Gething denied allegations of perjury put to him in by Rhun ap Iorwerth in First Minister's Questions the same day, describing the allegations as 'obnoxious'.[55] A few days later, he removed Hannah Blythyn from her role as Minister for Social Partnership, alleging that she was the leak of the text messages.[56] She denied this.[57] Blythyn was replaced by Sarah Murphy on 17 May.[58]
![](http://178.128.105.246/content-http-upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Prime_Minister_Keir_Starmer_meets_Wales_Vaughan_Gething_%2853843623368%29.jpg/220px-Prime_Minister_Keir_Starmer_meets_Wales_Vaughan_Gething_%2853843623368%29.jpg)
On 17 May, Rhun ap Iorwerth announced that Plaid Cymru had withdrawn from the co-operation agreement with Welsh Labour.[59] On 5 June, after just 78 days as First Minister, Gething faced a non-binding vote of no-confidence in him as First Minister, tabled by the Welsh Conservatives, in which he lost by a margin of 29 votes to 27.[60] Despite losing the no confidence vote, Gething announced he would not resign as First Minister on 8 June.[61] However, on 16 July he announced his resignation[62][10] an hour after ministers Mick Antoniw, Julie James, Lesley Griffiths and Jeremy Miles stepped down from their posts.[63] His resignation will formally take effect when his successor is elected in the next Welsh Labour leadership election, and will make him the shortest serving First Minister since the role was created, a record previously held by Alun Michael.[64][65]
Personal life
Gething and his wife Michelle live in Penarth, where he has lived since 2011.[66] He is a member of the trade unions GMB, UNISON and Unite.[18][67]
References
- ^ "Lib Dem Williams named in new cabinet". BBC News. 19 May 2016. Archived from the original on 2 November 2019. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
- ^ "Lewis named as education minister". BBC News. 26 June 2013. Archived from the original on 4 December 2019. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
- ^ Davies, Daniel (9 November 2018). "Welsh Labour's mystery runners?". BBC News. Archived from the original on 27 May 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2019.
- ^ Gething is referred to as "black" in multiple sources.
- "UK has its first Black government leader as Vaughan Gething is elected first minister of Wales". AP News. 20 March 2024. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
- Deb, Sopan (21 March 2024). "Vaughan Gething of Wales Is Europe's First Black Head of Government". The New York Times.
- "Wales' election of its first Black leader means no White man runs a U.K. government for the first time ever - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. 20 March 2024. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
- Morris, Steven (16 March 2024). "Who is Vaughan Gething, the new Welsh Labour leader?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
- "Vaughan Gething to become Wales' first black leader". BBC News. 15 March 2024. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
- ^ "Who is Vaughan Gething, Wales' next first minister?". BBC News. 16 March 2024. Archived from the original on 19 March 2024. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
- ^ The following sources describes Gething to lead a "country".
- Morris, Steven (16 March 2024). "Vaughan Gething to become Welsh first minister after Labour leadership win". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
- "Vaughan Gething to Become First Black Leader of European Country". Bloomberg.com. 20 March 2024. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
- Farrell, James. "Who Is Vaughan Gething? What To Know About Europe's First Black Government Leader". Forbes. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
- "Vaughan Gething to become next first minister of Wales after winning Welsh Labour leadership race". Sky News. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
- Hazell, Will (16 March 2024). "Vaughan Gething to become Welsh First Minister and Europe's first black leader". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
- "Vaughan Gething: What does his win mean for representation?". BBC News. 18 March 2024. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
- "Vaughan Gething wins Welsh Labour leadership contest". www.ft.com. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
- ^ "Who is Vaughan Gething, Wales' next first minister?". BBC News. 16 March 2024. Archived from the original on 19 March 2024. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
- ^ Mercer, Rosie; Deans, David (16 July 2024). "The Welsh first minister who lasted 118 days". BBC News. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
Mr Gething, whose full name is Humphrey Vaughan ap David Gething, was born in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, in southern Africa in 1974.
- ^ Gregory, Andy (16 March 2024). "Vaughan Gething to become Wales's first minister and country's first Black leader". The Independent. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
Mr Gething was chosen by Welsh Labour members to be their party leader in a result announced in Cardiff on Saturday, the day after his 50th birthday.
- ^ a b Aitken, Catriona. "Wales' FM Gething denies wrongdoing as he resigns". BBC News. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
15 March 2024: Vaughan Gething celebrates his 50th birthday
- ^ a b c d e f Owen, Paul (3 August 2009). "Black Welshman aims to take the fight to the BNP". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 7 September 2013. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
- ^ a b c Harri, Guto (31 October 2018). "Vaughan Gething wants to be Welsh Labour's Sadiq Khan". British GQ. Archived from the original on 7 August 2020. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
- ^ a b Mosalski, Ruth (6 November 2018). "The Vaughan Gething interview: The racism I faced growing up, my family and why I'd be the best First Minister". Wales Online. Archived from the original on 17 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
- ^ "Alumni at the Senedd". Aberystwyth University. 6 June 2011. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
- ^ a b c "Vaughan Gething Assembly selection 2011" (PDF). Welsh Labour. 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 September 2011. Retrieved 13 May 2011.
- ^ "About Vaughan". Vaughan Gething MS. Archived from the original on 20 September 2020. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
- ^ Crecsi, Elena (15 March 2013). "From student unions to the Senedd and Westminster, how do today's youth become tomorrow's AMs and MPs?". Wales Online. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
- ^ a b "Morgan urges Labour to hold firm". BBC News. 23 May 2008. Archived from the original on 17 March 2024. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
- ^ Gething, Vaughan (28 October 2018). "Vaughan Gething: In Black History Month, I'm proud to be supported by BAME Labour". LabourList. Archived from the original on 31 October 2020. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
- ^ "Mid and West Wales". BBC News. Archived from the original on 2 March 2023. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
- ^ "Vaughan Gething-about". Vaughan Gething. 2011. Archived from the original on 30 June 2011. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
- ^ "'He broke the rules'". WalesOnline. 24 June 2004. Archived from the original on 12 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
- ^ "Police confirm probe over dirty tricks claim". WalesOnline. 14 October 2004. Archived from the original on 13 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
- ^ "Wales elections > Cardiff South and Penarth". BBC News. 6 May 2011. Archived from the original on 9 May 2011. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
- ^ Blake, Aled (6 May 2011). "Assembly election: Meet the incoming AMs". WalesOnline website. Media Wales Ltd. Archived from the original on 14 October 2012. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
- ^ "Cardiff South and Penarth - Welsh Assembly constituency - Election 2016 - BBC News". Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ "Welsh Government | Vaughan Gething AM". gov.wales. Archived from the original on 13 November 2017. Retrieved 13 November 2017.
- ^ "General election: 'Doesn't matter if I'm a Corbyn fan'". BBC News. 19 May 2017. Archived from the original on 6 October 2021. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
- ^ "Owen Smith to challenge Corbyn for Labour leadership". The Guardian. 13 July 2016. Archived from the original on 16 July 2016. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
- ^ "Health Secretary walks away from questions over calls for inquiry into health board's actions". ITV. 24 August 2017. Archived from the original on 12 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
- ^ "Wales' new first minister Mark Drakeford appoints his team". BBC News. 13 December 2018. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ "'Labour's general election campaign was staggeringly inept, the next leader must do something about it'". WalesOnline. 23 January 2020.
- ^ "Wales election: New health and education ministers in reshuffle". BBC News. 12 May 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ "Wales v Scotland Six Nations match ON despite rise in coronavirus cases, Welsh health minister says". WalesOnline. 12 March 2020. Archived from the original on 12 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
- ^ "Welsh health minister who said Wales v Scotland was ON speaks for first time". 15 March 2020. Archived from the original on 13 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
- ^ "Wales match was hours from becoming super spreader amid chaos behind scenes". 12 March 2021. Archived from the original on 13 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
- ^ a b "Coronavirus: Welsh health minister caught swearing about Labour AM". BBC News. 22 April 2020. Archived from the original on 22 April 2020. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
- ^ Waterson, Jim; Hern, Alex (22 April 2020). "Welsh minister's mic mistake broadcasts sweary rant to assembly". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 17 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
- ^ "Welsh health minister insists he has not broken lockdown ruled". The Guardian. 12 May 2020. Archived from the original on 26 February 2024. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ "Vaughan Gething admits he never read major report into how ready UK was for pandemic before Covid". Wales Online. 4 July 2023. Archived from the original on 12 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
- ^ "Jeremy Miles officially joins race to succeed Mark Drakeford as Labour leader in Wales". Sky News. 18 December 2023. Archived from the original on 26 December 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
- ^ "Welsh Labour leadership: Jeremy Miles criticises Unite rule". BBC News. 27 January 2024. Archived from the original on 10 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
- ^ "Welsh Labour leadership contender claims he was unfairly blocked from union nomination". ITV. 26 January 2024. Archived from the original on 12 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
- ^ "Welsh Labour leadership nomination a shocking mess – Unite official". BBC News. 29 January 2024. Archived from the original on 12 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
- ^ "Vaughan Gething only joined 'stitch-up' union months ago". Nation.cymru. 29 January 2024. Archived from the original on 12 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
- ^ a b Browne, Adrian; Deans, David (16 March 2024). "Welsh Labour leadership: Vaughan Gething to be Wales' next first minister". BBC News. Archived from the original on 15 March 2024. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
- ^ a b Morris, Steven (16 March 2024). "Vaughan Gething to become Welsh first minister after Labour leadership win". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 16 March 2024. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
- ^ "Plenary 20/03/2024". Welsh Parliament. 20 March 2024. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
- ^ a b Cassidy, Maria; Shuttleworth, Peter (20 March 2024). "Vaughan Gething appointed Wales' first minister". BBC News. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
- ^ Mosalski, Ruth (21 March 2024). "Live updates as Vaughan Gething confirms his cabinet appointments in first full day in Wales' top job". WalesOnline. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
- ^ Browne, Adrian (21 March 2024). "New First Minister Vaughan Gething announces cabinet". BBC News. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
- ^ "Privy Council appointment: March 2024" (PDF). GOV.UK. 28 March 2024. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
- ^ Tilbrook, Richard (10 April 2024). "Orders Approved and Business Transacted at the Privy Council Held by the King at Buckingham Palace on 10th April 2024" (PDF). The Privy Council Office. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
- ^ a b Mansfield, Mark (7 May 2024). "Vaughan Gething misled UK Covid Inquiry by not admitting he deleted messages". Nation.Cymru. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ Mosalski, Ruth (7 May 2024). "Vaughan Gething denies 'obnoxious' claim he committed perjury at Covid inquiry". Wales Online. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ Mosalski, Ruth (16 May 2024). "Vaughan Gething sacks member of cabinet over leak". Wales Online. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ "I am deeply shocked and saddened by what has happened today. I am clear and have been clear that I did not, nor have I ever leaked anything. Integrity is all in politics and I retain mine. 1/2 🧵". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ Price, Emily (17 May 2024). "Sarah Murphy replaces sacked junior minister Hannah Blythyn". Nation.Cymru. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ Hayward, Will (17 May 2024). "Plaid Cymru pulls out of deal to support Labour in the Senedd". Wales Online. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
- ^ "Vaughan Gething: Welsh first minister to face no-confidence vote". BBC News. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
- ^ "Vaughan Gething won't quit after losing vote of no confidence". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
- ^ Grierson, Jamie (16 July 2024). "Vaughan Gething resigns as first minister of Wales". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
- ^ Grierson, Jamie (16 July 2024). "Vaughan Gething's leadership in peril as four Welsh ministers resign". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
- ^ "Vaughan Gething quits as Welsh First Minister following resignations from his government". ITV News. 16 July 2024. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
- ^ "Alun Michael no longer shortest serving First Minister after Northern Ireland FM steps down". Nation.Cymru. 4 February 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
- ^ "Vaughan Gething-about". Vaughan Gething. 2011. Archived from the original on 30 June 2011. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
- ^ "Vaughan Gething AM: Minister for Health and Social Services". GOV.WALES. Archived from the original on 15 November 2019. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
External links
![](http://178.128.105.246/content-http-upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- Current events from July 2024
- 1974 births
- Living people
- 21st-century Welsh lawyers
- Alumni of the University of Wales
- Black British politicians
- Councillors in Cardiff
- Labour Co-operative members of the Senedd
- Politicians from Cardiff
- Politicians from Dorset
- Wales AMs 2011–2016
- Wales MSs 2016–2021
- Wales MSs 2021–2026
- Welsh people of Zambian descent
- Zambian emigrants to the United Kingdom
- Zambian people of Welsh descent
- Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom